


Turpentine and Scotch Fumes

by soulofpetrichor



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Artist Markus (Detroit: Become Human), Carl Lives, Carl's Daughter, Developing Relationship, F/M, Kissing, Love Confessions, Not Beta Read, Painting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 05:12:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16886256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulofpetrichor/pseuds/soulofpetrichor
Summary: In the aftermath of the revolution, Markus finds unexpected companionship close to home.





	Turpentine and Scotch Fumes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HisokaAyase](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HisokaAyase/gifts).



> A gift for Hiso. Mona is her OC :)

Markus prepared breakfast for Carl, as he’d done a thousand times before. 

It was funny, how much things had changed, and how much they’d stayed the same. When the revolution was over, he hadn’t known what to do with himself. The hard part was done--the others could handle the legalities of becoming people without his help. Of course, he’d been happy to put in an appearance when needed, but that wasn’t often. 

It felt easy, even natural, to slip back into his old life like a well-worn coat. Except for the lack of an LED on his temple, it often felt as if nothing had changed. 

Markus didn’t resent that, though. He had a wonderful life. Carl had always given him freedom in spades, encouraged him to be himself and make his own decisions. Though he hadn’t understood what to do with that time prior to becoming deviant, he was beginning to understand how to apply the things the old man had taught him. 

It was an easy routine. In the morning, he prepared breakfast for Carl, administered his medicine, and helped him get ready. He sat at the table with Carl and Mona while they ate, reading a book or watching the news. Markus found that he actually enjoyed cooking, now that he was aware of himself--what was stranger was that he often found himself jealous of Carl and Mona being able to taste the food he made. That was something CyberLife had never perfected.

After breakfast, Mona would dash off to work. One morning, she kissed Markus on the cheek as she dashed out the door. Markus wrinkled his brow, touching the spot with his fingertips in confusion as she looked back at him over her shoulder and smiled. He met her gaze with curiosity, internally trying to parse through the reason his thirium pump was stuttering. 

Markus often painted with Carl these days, rather than simply observing as the older man worked on his own pieces. There was a beautiful peace in it, the golden light filtering in through the glass walls of the studio framing everything perfectly. 

“You know, I think your work is better than mine, Markus,” Carl said one morning with pride in his voice. “It’s clear, honest. You see things in a new light.”

“I have a long way to go before I surpass my teacher,” Markus replied, though inside he was filled with joy. Carl’s approval meant everything to him, always had. 

Mona joined them in the studio sometimes, on days she wasn’t working. She was more of a sculptor than a painter, herself, but she would help Markus mix colors, adding the perfect amount of turpentine to the pigment by feel. 

Even when she was working on her own in the corner, molding new faces out of soft clay, Markus found himself distracted. Little bits of her would seep into his paintings--the cerulean shade of her eyes, the gold of her hair. The tiny lines at the corner of her mouth when she smiled. Little fragments, invisible to the casual observer, but glaringly obvious to him. He pursed his lips as he examined his painting. What did it mean?

~~~~~~

As happened relatively often nowadays, Markus found that he had the evening to himself. He briefly considered calling North and Josh, but ended up deciding he didn’t feel like going out. Things had been so crazy during the revolution. It felt good to take a night off every now and then and relax. 

Carl had gone to bed early. Markus sat on the couch in the living room, watching an old movie on TV. His programming told him it was some awful horror flick from the 1990s--he tried to get into it, but it wasn’t doing it for him. One of the drawbacks to being a deviant was the ability to be aware of being bored. Eventually he sank into a diagnostic routine, figuring that it was better than struggling to focus on the terrible CGI for any longer.

He was started out of his reverie when someone plopped down on the couch beside him. “That bad, huh?” Mona said with a teasing smile, nodding at the TV.

“I just wasn’t feeling it.” Markus shrugged. 

“That’s fair.” Mona reached behind them and pulled a decanter of scotch off the bar cart--Carl’s favorite. She poured a hefty measure into a glass and took a gulp. “I’m not feeling it either. Want to see if anything else is on?”

“Sure.”

Mona flipped through the channels absentmindedly, swirling the scotch around in her glass. She took another sip and set it down on the table, liquor running down the walls of the glass in syrupy streaks as it settled back into its vessel. Markus found himself staring at the perfect bow of her lips, her easy smile. 

Suddenly, things fell into place.

“Mona,” Markus sat up, still puzzling through his new revelation. “Can I try something?”

“Sure?” She raised an eyebrow quizzically. “What--?”

Markus leaned in, cupping his hand to her face, and kissed her. And it felt right. That feeling that nagged at the back of his mind when she kissed him on the cheek or worked alongside him in the studio was back in full force, and this time he had a name to put to it--affection. Desire. Love, even? 

Mona sighed, melting into the kiss, giving herself over to Markus. As if she wanted it just as badly as he did. As if she had all along--

They broke apart. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Markus said softly, reaching down to intertwine his fingers with hers. 

She shrugged. “You deserved to decide what you wanted for yourself.”

Markus leaned in and kissed her again, running his fingers through her golden hair. “Decision made.”


End file.
